The first time you boot your system to run SmallWall, you must configure it. Once configured, it will automatically run SmallWall with your configuration when booted.
When booting your SmallWall system for the first time:
Insert the SmallWall CD, CF USB stick, or disk you prepared according to the instructions above. On a CD only system, also insert the formatted and blank floppy disk. Make sure the floppy is writable (not write-protected) and formatted with the FAT file system.
Ensure that the system boots from the CD, CF or disk. You may need to enter the BIOS on your system to configure this.
Ensure that the system console is available. On a PC, make sure keyboard and monitor are connected to the system. On an embedded box, the serial port is the console; connect it to a terminal, or use a null-modem cable to connect it to a serial port on another computer running a terminal emulator.
On a Soekris box or WRAP board, make sure the console speed is set to 9600 bps in the BIOS (set ConSpeed=9600 for Soekris boxes). On other boards you may need 19200 or 38400.
Connect the system to the network.
Boot the system and wait for the console menu to appear. Assign the network interface ports as described in the following chapter.
Complete the configuration of your SmallWall system by using the webGUI as described below. Save your configuration file to your working computer as a backup.
It seems that some Soekris net45xx's have a bug where sometimes a character is sent twice over the serial console, but another character is dropped instead. This is solved with a BIOS upgrade from Soekris (version 1.15a or later).
After you have finished editing your configuration, you are ready to go. You may not need to reboot your SmallWall box, although you may wish to do so to see that it boots directly into operation.